Where I got it
After seeing the “what’s new at Mecca” email newsletter, I decided to head into my local Mecca store to have a look if they would have new products on display yet. Usually, they would take a few days to start stocking up, but I was able to find both this lip product and the new Soft Matte Complete Foundation on display. You might not be able to find this new product in the NARS usual stand, but you will find them on those “new arrival” stands scattered around the store. When I found these, the foundation and the lip colour were next to each other. There are a total of 5 shades and they are $44 each.
NARS Air Matte Lip Color in Joyride
What I got
This is the NARS Air Matte Lip Colour in Joyride (6.8g). An airy matte, long-wear lip colour that allows you to customise its application. The formula is lightweight yet provides a creamy feel for lasting comfort. Infused with a blend of silky polymers and micro-powders that instantly diffuse colour for a soft-focus finish.
Ingredients: Dimethicone, cyclopentasiloxane, polyglyceryl-2 triisostearate, dimethicone crosspolymer, trimethylsiloxysilicate, tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate, flavor (aroma), benzyl salicylate, benzyl benzoate, phenoxyethanol. may contain/peut contenir/(+/-): iron oxides (ci 77491, ci 77492, ci 77499), red 28 (ci 45410), red 30 lake (ci 73360), red 6 (ci 15850), red 7 lake (ci 15850), titanium dioxide (ci 77891), yellow 5 lake (ci 19140)
NARS Air Matte Lip Color in Joyride
NARS Air Matte Lip Color in Joyride
How I find it
I have tried some of these matte lip cream products before which applies creamy and dries down to a powdery matte finish. The packaging is really sleek, but it is also this annoying matte plastic which can get really dirty and sticky. It can stick to dust and is really difficult to clean. It does come with a doe-foot applicator and the shade of the tube does correspond quite well with the actual shade of the lip colour.
I make sure my lips are in relatively good condition, as it no dry flakey bits and not broken areas and scabs. I also use a good lip balm at least a good 10 minutes before applying the lip colour. I let the lip balm sink in, then I lightly dab the lip colour to the centre of my lips and spread the colour out from there. I use a small amount each time and only apply to the lower lips and then I press my lips together to bring the colour to my upper lip. I like that blotted lip look or a sheer wash of colour look when using a matte creamy lip colour like this one.
NARS Air Matte Lip Color in Joyride
Overall
The lip colour feels really smooth on the lips on application. It doesn’t really “dry down”, but at the same time it looks creamy matte on the lips. It feels almost like velvet so it is really silky. I do have pigmented lips that has a purple/blue undertone, so when I wear shades that are bright and pinky or coral, it could look really strange. However, with this formula, I can wear this quite sheer and blotted out, so it would look more diffused instead of block-like. I would say this shade would look better on lighter skin tones, but that’s my personal opinion.
The lip colour does fade, it is not a very long-lasting lip colour or a transfer-resistant lip colour so you will see transfer on your cups, what you eat, etc. However, it does fade nicely, instead of patchy or dry and crackly. You don’t get that at all. I just wipe my lips with a tissue after the majority of the colour has faded or after eating, then I reapply. If my lips feels a bit dry, I apply lip balm first, then reapply the lip colour.
